Vat mass validation services

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VAT Mass Registration Number
Validation Services

Alain Blattmann
+41 79 476 68 72
Contact: vat.abconsulting@yahoo.com

© 2012 VAT.ABConsulting@yahoo.com All rights reserved.

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VAT registration number validation

 Why check VAT numbers?  What happens in case checks are no
performed?
• To issue correct invoices
• Assessment of VAT because exemption is not
• To perform and report transactions correctly
accepted
• To submit correct EU Sales and Purchase
• Increased with interests & penalties
Listings
• Additional administrative costs
• To have proof that a given VAT number
is/was valid and belongs to your • Risk of additional, time consuming, audits by
customer/supplier (name and address tax Authorities
validation)

 Complexity
• Each jurisdiction may apply their own interpretation of the requirement.
• This may include not only validating the VAT number but as well the customer name and
address.
• It is expected at a minimum that customer VAT numbers will be validated and that this
validation is performed on a regular basis.
• Valid VAT registration numbers must be sought for instances where a number is found to be
„invalid‟ or missing from the record.
• This is a time consuming and manual task for organizations, which could be subject to error.


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UK - Recommendations - Reasonable steps

 HMRC does not expect you to go beyond what is reasonable but will be seeking to identify
what actions you took to check the validity of your customer's EU VAT registration number.
This will focus on the due diligence checks you undertook and, most importantly, the
actions taken by you in response to the results of those checks.

We would consider 'reasonable steps' to be, you genuinely doing everything you can to check
the integrity of the VAT registration number, being able to demonstrate you have done so
and taking heed of any indications that the number may be invalid.

 Some examples of not having taken 'reasonable steps' would be:

• using a VAT number that does not conform to the published format for your customer‟s
Member State as shown in paragraph 16.19, or
• using a VAT number that you have not regularly checked using the Europa website or with
HMRC
• using a VAT number which you have already been informed is invalid, or
• using a VAT number which you know does not belong to your customer.

Source:http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channelsPortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pageLibrary_ShowContent&
propertyType=document&id=HMCE_CL_000152


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VAT EU Commission

Under the new VAT system intra-Community supplies of goods are exempt from VAT in the
Member State of dispatch when they are made to a taxable person in another Member State
who will account for the VAT on arrival. Therefore any taxable person making such supplies
must be able to check quickly and easily that their customers in another Member
State are taxable persons and do hold a valid VAT identification number. For that
purpose, inter alia, each tax administration maintains an electronic database containing the
VAT registration data of its traders. Such information includes the VAT identification
number, the date of issue, the trader's name, the trader's address and, where applicable, the
date of cessation of validity of a VAT number.

What they have done
Web page to verify validity of a VAT identification number issued by a Member State.

Source: http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/taxation/vat/traders/intra_community_supplies/index_en.htm


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Services Offering

 Mass validation of Value Added Tax (VAT) using the EU
Commission VIES services
 Clear results classification (Valid / Failed)
 Categorisation of the failed to support further analysis
 Print Screen of the “VIES” web page result
 Multi pass validation is performed against VIES in case of services
unavailability – Ensure all records are properly checked
 Possibility provided to check/validate <Customer Name> /
<Customer Address>
 <Customer Name> / <Customer address> translation to English


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Input Needed

 Column B – VAT Number to check (first two digit = Country code
then VAT number)

 Column A (Optional) – Requester VAT Number (first two digit =
Country code then VAT number)

 Column C (Optional) = Customer Name to check

 Column D (Optional) = Customer Address to check


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Results Validation

 Validation Status (Yes/No)
 Date when request received (VIES)
 Error Message (When validation Status in “No”) – (Invalid input - VIES)
 Consultations numbers (VIES) – When requester provided
 When available: Customer Name (VIES) / Customer Name in English
 When available: Customer Address (VIES) / Customer Address in
English
 Screen Shoot hyperlink (VIES)
 Customer name check (number of words checked) % of match
 Customer address check (number of words checked) % of match


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Results Validation – Summary Results


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Valid VAT Results Validation – Print Screen


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No Valid Results Validation – Print Screen


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Extra Steps For Invalid VAT

 Q7 : The system indicates that a number is invalid. What action should I take?
A number can be invalid for a number of reasons. In the first case, check with your customer that the
number quoted by him is correct (correct number of characters, correct length). If the number quoted by
your customer, even after checking, continues to be invalid, you should ask him to contact his tax
administration.

 Q12 : What do I have to do if my own VAT number appears as invalid?
The Commission´s web site is a real-time system which checks the validity of VAT identification numbers
against the databases maintained by Member States.
If your VAT number appears as invalid, you should take this matter up with your own tax administration.

 Q13 : What do I have to do if the VAT number of my customer appears as invalid?
The Commission´s web site is a real-time system which checks the validity of VAT identification numbers
against the databases maintained by Member States. In other words, when you check a number, it is the
database of that Member State that is being checked.
If the VAT number of your customer comes up as invalid, then he should take the matter up with his fiscal
administration.

 Q20 : Is there a database with all VAT registered persons available?
There does not exist a European data base with VAT registered persons. The Commission web site is
connected to the Member States VAT databases respectively and the verification is based on the
information available in the respective database.
Source: http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/faq.html


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# of word of more
than 3 letter to
match

# of word
mathching
VIES


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VIES possible answer

 Yes, valid VAT number.

 No, invalid VAT number. (meaning that the number introduced is not valid at least
on the date specified)
 Service unavailable. Please re-submit your request later. (meaning there is some
problem with either the network or the Web application)
 Member State service unavailable. Please re-submit your request later.(meaning
the application in the Member State whose VAT number you are trying to validate
is not available)

 Error: Incomplete (VAT + Member State) or corrupted data input.

 Request time-out. Please re-submit your request later.

 Multi pass validation is performed against VIES in case of services unavailability to ensure you
can focus only on true VAT identification number errors
© 2012 VAT.ABConsulting@yahoo.com All rights reserved. Source: http://ec.europa.eu/taxation_customs/vies/faq.html

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Contact

Alain Blattmann
+41 79 476 68 72
Email: vat.abconsulting@yahoo.com


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